A formerly well-connected GOP donor convicted of giving teenage girls gifts, alcohol and money in exchange for sex has been sentenced to 21 years in prison on sex trafficking charges in Minnesota.

A formerly well-connected GOP donor convicted of giving teenage girls gifts, alcohol and money in exchange for sex was sentenced Wednesday to 21 years in prison on sex trafficking charges.

    • kescusay@lemmy.world
      171·
      1 year ago

      I don’t see it as actually working. The attempts to smear LGBTQ+ people as groomers only resonate with revolting bigots who want to believe that shit anyway. Everyone else seems to be recoiling from it in horror, especially the younger generations.

        • some_guy@lemmy.sdf.org
          1·
          1 year ago

          The difference is that the Left would have to stoop to their level to be effective at this game. It’s the same reason I think we’re ineffective at pushing back on rightwing violence. Only a handful of us are willing to commit violence.

          While I support nazi-punchers, I myself do not punch nazis. I’d like to think I would, but I honestly wouldn’t unless I feared for my safety. And for those who do it to protect the safety of marginalized groups, I applaud.

        • kescusay@lemmy.world
          1·
          1 year ago

          What I was trying to get at is that the younger generations don’t seem to be as susceptible to it, but I see your point. We need to work our asses off to make the next election an overwhelming rejection of the hateful shitheads pushing this crap.

            • ImFresh3x@sh.itjust.works
              1·
              1 year ago

              About 48 percent of Gen Z voters identify as a person of color, while the boomers they’re replacing in the electorate are 72 percent White. Gen Z voters are on track to be the most educated group in our history, and the majority of college graduates are now female. Because voting participation correlates positively with education, expect women to speak with a bigger voice in our coming elections. Gen Z voters are much more likely to cite gender fluidity as a value, and they list racism among their greatest concerns. Further, they are the least religious generation in our history.

              https://archive.ph/3Ydkn

      • stereofony@lemm.ee
        6·
        1 year ago

        Speak for yourself. As a trans person, I stopped using Instagram entirely because it got to a point where every top level comment, regardless of the subject matter, was a transphobic one (even ones not even REMOTELY related to LGBTQ+ issues).

        It was never like this before the recent GOP push in anti-queer rhetoric. It’s the worst it’s been in my life, tbh. Worse than when my peers used to casually call things “gay” as an insult. Because this time, the rhetoric is genocidal.

        • EssentialCoffee@midwest.socialEnglish
          31·
          1 year ago

          Partly because the people supporting them are okay with this. Because it’s their people doing it and their people are going to hurt the right people.

          You can’t logic someone out of a position they didn’t logic themselves into.